Abstract
THE mechanical properties of a natural or synthetic polymer are profoundly affected when the van der Waals' intermolecular forces are supplemented by stable chemical linkages (cross-linkages) between the polymer molecules. In synthetic polymers, cross-linking may generally be brought about either as an essential part of the polymerization reaction, or by chemical modification of the polymer subsequent to polymerization; but cross-linking in natural rubber can only be accomplished by the latter method. Although cross-linkages in synthetic rubbers could be introduced during polymerization if desired, they are, in fact, excluded so far as possible; hence, as with natural rubber, it is necessary to carry out the cross-linking reactions on the polymer itself. In a recent series of lectures at the Royal Institution, London, various types of cross-linking mechanisms and their effect on the properties of polymers were discussed. Dr. H. P. Staudinger dealt with the cross-linking of vinyl polymers, the present writer discussed the structural modification of high polymers by vulcanization, with particular reference to rubber, and Dr. L. R. G. Treloar described the relation of mechanical properties to the degree of cross-linking in rubbers. Phenol-formaldehyde resins, in which the role of cross-linking reactions is rather less clear, were surveyed by Mr. E. G. K. Pritchett. My thanks are due to the board of the British Rubber Producers' Research Association for permission to contribute to this series of lectures and to prepare the following summary of them.
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BLOOMFIELD, G. Cross-Linking in Polymeric Systems. Nature 161, 298–300 (1948). https://doi.org/10.1038/161298a0
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/161298a0
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